Apparatus for melting metal



March 7, 1944. H. E. SOMES APPARATUS FOR MELTING METAL Filed Ja'n; 11, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 bu QN INVENTOR. fi6ward' 50777495 ATTORNEY.

March 7, 1944. SQMES 2,343,337

APPARATUS FOR MELTING METAL Filed Jan. 11, 1941 2 Shets-Sheet 2 X; h I JL TTORNEY.

. Patented Mar. 7, 194 I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE APPARATUS FOR MELTING METAL Howard E. Somes, Detroit, Mich, assignor to Budd Wheel Company, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application January 11,1941, Serial No.'374,120

6 Claims.

The present invention relates in general to the reduction of metal borings to molten metal and more specifically to an improved apparatus for feeding cast iron borings to a melting furnace.- J

By the termJborings" is meant especially the short turnings produced during the boring or machining of cast iron or other metal. Such borings may be and usually' are of the wet type, wetted with the cutting compounds used in the machining, which compounds may consist of water and water-soluble oil or other cutting oils not mixed with water. The condition of the borings on delivery to the foundry may be such as to carry 50 pounds of water per gross ton of borings and from 20 to 30 pounds of cutting oils per gross ton.

Heretofore, cast-iron borings have been converted into molten iron after removal of water and oil as by centrifuging and then briquetting, after which the briquettes were charged together withother material into a cupola furnace, or charged without the use of other material directly into an electric furnace of either the indirect are or induction type.

In the use of the indirect arc furnace, it is" customary to continuously oscillat or rock the furnace through about 1'70 to 200 degrees to cause the molten metal to wash the walls of the fur-' nace to protect them from becoming heated to an undesirably high temperature. .The furnace is usually provided with a removable door and fixed'pouring spout. According to the known method of using such a furnace for the melting of borings, the furnace must be first pre-heated then charged through the removable door with enough borings to bring the level of the borings up to the level for which the furnace is designed to hold metal. The are is then turned on and the borings melted down. After this melting is.

completed, an additional charge of borings is added and the melting operation repeated. If, for example, the holding capacity of the furnace should be 10,000 pounds, it would be desirable to melt up to 10,000 pounds of borings without pouring from the bath. With sumcient metal melted to reach the upper bath level and brought to the desired pouring temperature, the metal would then be poured froma fixed spout into a suitable ladle. The pouring would be continued to approximately within 3,000 pounds of the contents of the furnace. Into the remaining 3,000 pounds of molten metalfresh borlngs would be applied and melted down as before.

It will be seen from the above that such operation is of an intermittent nature consisting of I loading, melting, and pouring intervals during which pouring intervals the arc is discontinued. It is also to be noted that in order to charge the furnace, the door must be removed, the are discontinued, and after charging is'completed, the door must be replaced, the are turned on, and the furnace periodically'rocked first through a narrow angle-and gradually to a greater angle as the charge permits. As indicated above, it has also been necessary to remove the undesirable water and oil as by centrifuging, before charging, inasmuch as any water remaining in the charge must be converted into steam and discharged as steam through the spout while any oil remainingin the charge would have to be volatilized. Both the water vapor and the oil have an undesirable effect on the refractory linings of the furnace. Oxygen produced as a result of the breaking down of the water vapor by the high temperature arc is productive of oxidationof the carbon or graphite electrodes and thereby productive of undesirable electrode consumption, which in the known practice, under such conditions, has been found to be very substantially in excess of that required for the treatment of dry metal.

According to the known art, a similar procedure. would be used with a furnace of the direct arc type, the essential difference in operation being that-the direct arc furnace might have a removable top permitting atop charge, and might have a hydraulic nose tilt permitting rapid pouring of the metal from the molten bath.

The object of the present invention in general is to overcome the above difficulties and to provide improved and highly economical and efficient means for the reduction of metal borings of the type above mentioned.

According to the present invention, the borings as they come to the foundry in the wet condition are freed of the oil and water, superheated and passed on into an arc furnace of the indirect or direct type through a novel coordinated arrangement of treating and handling'elements in a substantially continuous process.

Various objects and advantages of the invention, in addition to those outlined above, will be disclosed in the following specification and the drawings accompanying the same.

In the drawings: Q t

Figure 1 is a side elevation partly in'section illustrating a preferred form of apparatus embodying the invention.

Figure 2 is an end elevation of the lefthand end of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a diagrammatic top plan view showing an application of the invention to a furnace of the direct arc type.

Figure 4 is a diagrammatic view in the form of asection taken on the line fl 8 of Figure 3.

Referring to the drawings in detail and first to Figures 1 and 2, the melting furnace here shown atill is of .the indirect arc type having the usual feed opening II and pouring spout l2 and the usual arrangement permitting it to be rocked as indicated by the roller supports I3. For the sake of cleamess, such usual appurtenances and accessories arc electrode supportsand connections, and the means for oscillating or rocking the furnace are omitted, it being understood that such may be of any known or other suitable form. The present invention takes advantage of the rocking action of the-furnace by substituting for the usual removable door'at the feed opening a furnace loading hopper 37 to be periodically moved into the loading position in the rocking movement of the furnace. Such rocking movement is also taken advantage of by the provision of a control cam 38 mounted thereon for synchronizing certain operations of the system with the rocking movement of the furnace as will hereinafter appear.

Working in proper timed relation with the operations of the furnace is the pre-treating portion of the system shown at the top of Figures 1 and 2 and comprising the apparatus for pre-treating and feeding the borings to the furnace' loading hopper. This portion of the system comprises an elongated kiln or the like it mounted above the furnace on suitable structural framework l and arranged to enclose an inclined feeding hearth or trough element It extending into the kiln through an opening at the end. The trough element to is supported at the outer end by an extension l1 hung on a rod lB resiliently supported from a transverse beam l9 through a suitable resilient member 20, such as a spring or rubber cylinder. The trough or hearth Ibis supported at its lower end by means of atransverse supporting bar 2| extending through the side walls of the retort and supported on the outside thereof in eyes 22a of suspension rods 22 suspended from a. cross beam 23 in a manner to permit longitudinal and vertical vibratory movement of the hearth Mounted upon the upper end of the extension I! at the outer end of the trough I6 is a primary loading hopper 24 arranged to discharge into the upper end of the trough l6 through a discharge aperture- 25 whose area is controlled by an ad- 5 justable slide door 26 for regulating the rate of feed therethrough. The trough l6 and hopper 24 thus mounted in common are arranged to be vibrated together by suitable air operated vibrators 21 and 28 mounted at opposite ends of the trough and its extension II. It is to be understood, of course, that the vibrators are to be operated to produce vibration of the trough in a manner to agitate and feed the borings downwardly therealong in a manner well understood in the art. Mounted at the left-hand end of the kiln I4 is a burner 29 such as an oil or gas and along the trough or hearth IS in a direction in counterflow of the downward feed movement crating temperature and thereafter the vaporizing and burning of any oil or other combustible mixture which accompanies the borings assists the flame from burner 29 in providing the necessary operating temperature.

An outlet hopper 3! is arranged at the lower end of the trough lSto, receive the borings discharg d therefrom and conduct-them out of the kiln through a combined vertical chute 32 and secondary hopper 33 terminating in a. short straight sided chute 3d forming a temporary or intermittent storage chamber. The bottom opening of the chute 34 is controlled by a slide valve 35 operated by means of a pneumatic motor cylinder 35' controlled through a slide valve 37 operated by a cam 38' mounted upon and movable with the rocking furnace ID. The lower straight chute element 34 is surrounded by. a secondary hopper 35 arranged to guide the discharge into the furnace loading hopper 31, when the latter is 'in the loading position as shown. The sides and bottom of the fumace loading hopper 3? are designed to terminate in a narrow slot-like opening 38 through the refractory block 39 on the back of the feed opening frame 40. This aperture may be of a size one inch wide by six inches long in transverse cross section, and is set at such an angle as to permit the borings when discharged from the bottom of the chute 34 to fall directly through the slot into the furnace, when the furnace is in the loading pohour corresponding to two complete cycles per minute and assuming that the burner 29 is in operation and the trough l6 and hopper 24 are being vibrated to feed the borings from the hopper onto and downwardly along the trough or hearth It, the furnace loading hopper 31 will 1 burner arranged as shown to direct'a flame over of the borings and toward an exhaust flue 30 v communicating with the interior of the kiln near the upper end of the feed trough I6.

In practice the flame from the burner 29 initiates operation .of the kiln to raise it to onpass directly under the secondary hopper four times a minute, that is twice in each complete rocking cycle of the furnace. Each time the receiving hopper 31 passes under the chute 34 and secondary hopper 36, the cam 38 on the furnace l0 engages the plunger of the control valve 31 operating the valve in a manner to cause the motor cylinder 36' to open the slide valve 35, the cam 38' moving out of engagement with the valve 31' to permit closure of the slide valve 35 upon movement of the feed hopper 31 from under the secondary hopper 36.-

The wet borings passing from the primary loading hopper 24 on to the trough l6 at a given rate of feed determined by the regulation of the adjustable gate 26 in accordance with the requirements of the furnace, are agitated and fed downwardly along the trough It by the. vibratory movement of the-latter in counterflow to the flame from the burner 29. During the passage of the borings down the inclined hearth or trough, they are heated sufiiciently at the entrance end of the trough to drive off the water in the form of vapor which is carried oil through the exhaust stack 30. Upon further downward traversing of the trough the borings are heated to an elevated temperature say in the neighborhood of 600 to 800 degrees Fahrenheit, at which temperature the cutting oils i I per minute and ,the bath the borings in a clean and well superheated condition. The clean superheated borings now passing down through the chute 22 are at intervals stored in and discharged from the straight sided temporary storage chamber 34 in synchronism with the operation of the furnace. With a furnace having a usual rocking periodicity of four a capacity of say 5,000 pounds of metal per hour, 5,000 pounds of borings would be passed through the pre-treating retort l4, per hour. The borings would thus be introduced into the furnace at regular intervals of four per minute in an amount slightly less than 21 pounds at each opening of the-slide valve 25. If the furnace has a holding capacity of'8,000 pounds of molten metal when fully charged, and if we pour from the furnace not more than 5,000 pounds leaving a net balance of not less than 3,000 pounds of molten metal in the furnace during all periods of regular operation, the addition of 21 pounds of preheated borings at a time will represent but a small fraction of the heat capacity of thebath.

Let us assume that the temperature of the bath is maintained substantially uniformly at that re- 'quired for pouring which, for example, may be in the neighborhood of 2,700 degrees Fahrenheit. We may further assume that the borings will be discharged through the feed hopper 31' at a temperature in the neighborhood of 800 degrees Fahrenheit. Such being the condition, the 20 pounds of borings dropped in four times a minute will pass into the molten condition with great rapidity. This melting is, in fact, so rapid, that the borings are only visible as such on the top of for a few seconds. In practice. I have poured molten metal at 2,700 degrees fifteen seconds after the charge had been discontinued without there remaining any sign of borings on the surface of the bath. By the use of the present system the normal melting capacity of the furnace equipment has been greatly increased. In the case of a small experimental unit now in operationsuch increase is indicated as being in excess Co-incident with this increase in capacity, I find a greatly diminished electrical consumption for a given volume of molten metal produced and a greatly reduced electrode consumption, the latter being reduced from eight pounds of electrode per ton of metal to less than five pounds of electrode per ton of metal. Metallurgically, the cast iron is believed to be the equal or better than that produced in a cupola furnace with high cost-material such as pig iron, and automotive and agricultural steel scrap. Referring now to Figures 3 and 4 where a direct arc furnace of the multi-phase type is used, the borings will be dropped into the furnace 4| through a tube 42 of Silimanite or other high refractory material extending down to near the metal level 43. The stream of borings is thus enclosed to prevent their being thrown against the electrodes and to prevent the formation of a cloud of metallic dust which would envelop the electrodes and perhaps cause short circuits. Thus the borings will enter the bath at the middle of the upper portion between the arcs which ordinarily is the hottest portion of the bath and consequently that portion which usually produces the most damaging radiations to the walls and the roof of the furnace. It is believed that by the I introduction of the relatively cool borings at this point the usual direction of circulation will be reversed. It is believed that the bath in such a furnace as ordinarily used superheats in the center and flows outwardly until the superheated metalcomes in contact with the, refractory walls of the furnace causing damage at the points of contact between the superheated metal and the refractory lining. According to my method of operation the portion which ordinarily would be superheated becomes that portion of the bath which is operated at the lowest temperature due to introduction of the relatively cool material at this point. Such being the case, it is to be expected that the bath will flow downwardly at the center and be replaced at the center by metal flowing inwardly from the outer upper areas of the bath carrying with it the portions adjacent tot-1e arcs. Such downward circulation will thus cause a circulation upward at the outer edges and toward the center of the liquid pool. In the use of the direct arc furnace as above described, it is.

thus possible and preferable that a continuous uniform feed of the borings to the furnace be maintained, and interrupted only for pouring.

I- have found, however, that by discharging the borings into the furnace in such a manner as to direct them against the heated electrodes, reduced electrical current consumption per ton of metal produced will be experienced due to a reduction of electrode temperature, and where the slight additional electrode consumption is caused by'the combination of the carbon of the electrodes. with the molten iron it is not objectionable or may even be desired from a metallurgical standpoint and considerable increased economy may be obtained. Such a procedure will alsso effect a saving of refractories and increase the life of the furnace roof and side walls. Experimentally, I have determined in the case of indirect arc type furnace as disclosed in the drawings that a certain portion of'the borings may be stored upv in the hopper in the loading position as shown and that on oscillating, these borings will be gently rained down over the electrodes and that by so doing a very large reduction in electrical energy consumed was experienced. That the increase of electrodes consumed only amounted to about one pound per essary in so doing that the coke or graphite should be added at a uniform rate so as to combine with the incoming borings in the furnace in such a manner as to produce the desired results. To that end and where-the kiln is operated with a reducing atmosphere, the coke or graphite may be added continuously as a fine stream into the hopper 24 so as to blend uniformly with the borings. Under sucha process molten iron of the desired analysis may be withdrawn from the electric furnace continuously or intermittently. It will be understood that suitable additional feeding devices may be provided to supply silicon or other alloying substances such as metals. These alloy additions may be shot into the boring stream through hopper 24 or an additional hopper may be provided to discharge directly into hopper M.

The present apparatus is also applicable to the melting of borings which are neither wetted with water or oil or where due to prolonged exposure ing as it does the function of a on and the borings have become oxidized. Such uoxidized borings may be successfully processed according to the present method by the addition of a'suitable amount of coke or graphite as above described, By the use of nace.

Heretofore, it has been very dimcult to obtain such results on a production scale through'the. use of an electric furnace or other equipment, especially when working with highly oxidized borings.

While for the sake of definite disclosure I have herein described certain preferred apparatus, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to such specific apparatus but contemplates all such variations and modifications thereof as fall fairly within the scope of the appended claims.

This application is a continuation in part of my application Serial No. 158,008, filed August 9, 1937.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for feeding metal borings or the like to a melting furnace comprising an elongated kiln, an inclined vibratory conveyor mounted in ,the kiln, means for vibrating the conveyor to feed borings downwardly therealong, means carried by the conveyorand vibrated. therewith for feeding of borings at a uniform rate to the higher end of the conveyor, an exhaust stack communicating with the upper interior of the kiln near the,higher end of the conveyor, aburner mounted within the kiln near the lower end of the conveyor, and arranged to direct a flame upwardly and inclined along the conveyor in the direction of the exhaust stack, aclosed chute for conveying the borings from the lower discharge end of the vibratory conveyor, a hopper surrounding the lower end of .the chute, a slide valve for the lower end of the chute, said hopper beingarranged to feed borings from said chute into a melting furnace, and

means for controlling the opening and closing of said slide valve for admission of borings to the furnace.

2. Apparatus for feeding metal borings or the like to a melting furnace comprising a kiln, an

inclined conveyor hearth mounted within the.

kiln, means for moving the conveyor hearth to agitate and feed the borings downwardly along the hearth, means carried by the conveyor and moved therewith for feeding borings onto the upper end of the hearth, a burner within the kiln arranged to direct an upwardly inclined flame over the hearth from the lower end toward the upper'end, a chute for conveying borings from the lower end of the hearth, a valve closing the end of the chute, and a hopper for guiding bor- I 2,843,337 to the weather the water and oil have been dried ings from the end of the chute to a melting fur- 3. In an apparatus for treating borings the combination of means forming a drying chamber,

for receiving borings tuating said valve means to open position to dis-' charge a uniform amount of borings from said chute through saidpassageway into said furnace each time said valve means is actuated by said responsive mechanism.

4. Apparatus for feeding metal borings or the like to a melting furnace comprising an elongated kiln, an inclined vibratory conveyor mounted in the kiln, means for vibrating the conveyor to feed borings downwardly therealong, means carried by the conveyor and vibrated therewith for feeding of borings at a uniform rate to the higher end of the conveyor, an exhaust stack communicating with the upper interior of the kiln, near the higher end of the conveyor, a burner mounted within the kiln near the lower end of the conveyor, and arranged to direct a flame upwardly and inclined along the conveyor in the direction of the exhaust stack, a closed chute for conveying the borings from the lower discharge end of the vibratory conveyor, a slide valve for the lower end ofthe chute, and means for controlling the opening and closing of said slide valve for admission of borings to the furnace.

5. Apparatus for feeding metal borings" or the like to a melting furnace comprising a kiln, an inclined conveyor hearth mounted within the kiln, means for vibrating the conveyor hearth to agitate and feed the borings downwardly along the hearth, means carried by the conveyor and vibrated therewith for feeding borings onto the upper end of the hearth, a burner within the kiln arranged to 'direct an upwardly inclined flame over the hearth from the lower end toward the upper end, a chute for conveying borings from the lower end of the hearth, valve means and having a valve means therein for controlling the discharge of borings therefrom during nor- -mal furnace operation, trance passageway for receiving borings from said .into said furnace.

a furnace having an enchute, and, means continuously actuating, said valve means intermittently from closed to open position to discharge'a uniform amount of borings from said chutethrough said passageway HOWARD E. SOMES.

means intermittently for con- 

